Barrier for preventing oil contamination from well cellars

ABSTRACT

A barrier for preventing contamination of oil from a well cellar is provided. The barrier includes a bottom ring and a top ring. The bottom ring may include a vertical arm and a horizontal arm. The vertical arm is attached to a top rim of a well cellar and the horizontal arm is extending inward towards the center of the well cellar. The top rim of the well cellar may abut at the inner corner of the bottom ring. A sheet of plastic may cover the bottom ring and the opening to the well cellar. A top ring may align with and may be secured to the bottom ring, thereby sandwiching the plastic sheet in between the bottom ring and the top ring. A hole may be cut in the plastic sheet at the opening of the well cellar.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of priority of U.S. provisional application No. 61/812,960, filed Apr. 17, 2013, the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to soil contamination from drilling and, more particularly, to sealing of containment plastic to well cellars.

In the drilling industry, the initial hole is called a well cellar. During the drilling operation, containment plastic surrounds the well cellar. With no sealing method, occasionally overflow occurs which allows the drilling mud to flow underneath the containment plastic and into the ground thereby contaminating the soil. Currently, the method used is to cover the ground under and around the drilling rig. However, with respect to the cellar, the plastic is cut and is allowed to lie inside the cellar. When the cellar fills up and overflows, the mud flows under the containment plastic and contaminates the soil.

As can be seen, there is a need for a physical barrier which will prevent contamination during accidental overflow of drilling mud.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect of the present invention, a method of constructing a barrier to prevent contamination comprises: attaching a bottom ring to a top rim, wherein the top rim forms an opening to a well cellar; placing a sheet of plastic over the bottom ring and covering the opening of the well cellar; placing a top ring over the sheet of plastic and at least partially aligning the top ring with the bottom ring; securing the top ring to the bottom ring, and thereby sandwiching the sheet of plastic in between; and cutting a hole in the sheet of plastic that covers the opening of the well cellar.

In another aspect of the present invention, a system for preventing contamination of oil from a well cellar comprising: a bottom ring comprising a vertical arm and a horizontal arm substantially perpendicular to the vertical arm, wherein the vertical arm is attached to a top rim of the well cellar; a sheet of plastic covering the bottom ring and an opening formed by the top rim of the well cellar; and a top ring at least partially aligning with the horizontal arm of the bottom ring, wherein the top ring is secured to the bottom ring.

In another aspect of the present invention, a barrier to prevent contamination comprises: a bottom ring formed to secure to a top rim of well cellar and comprising a plurality of holes running through the bottom ring; a top ring aligning with the bottom ring, and comprising a plurality of holes running through the top ring, wherein the plurality of holes of the top ring align with the plurality of holes of the bottom ring; and a plurality of bolts formed to fit through the plurality of holes of the top ring aligned with the plurality of holes of the bottom ring, thereby securing the bottom ring and the top ring together.

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the present invention shown in use;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the top ring of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the bottom ring of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a detail exploded view of the present invention; and

FIG. 5 is a section detail view of the present invention along line 5-5 in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplated modes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of the invention. The description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention, since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims.

Broadly, an embodiment of the present invention provides a barrier for preventing contamination of oil from a well cellar. The barrier includes a bottom ring and a top ring. The bottom ring may include a vertical arm and a horizontal arm. The vertical arm is attached to a top rim of a well cellar and the horizontal arm is extending inward towards the center of the well cellar. The top rim of the well cellar may abut at the inner corner of the bottom ring. A sheet of plastic may cover the bottom ring and the opening to the well cellar. A top ring may align with and may be secured to the bottom ring, thereby sandwiching the plastic sheet in between the bottom ring and the top ring. A hole may be cut in the plastic sheet at the opening of the well cellar.

The present invention may alleviate soil contamination by creating a sealing surface between the corrugated well cellar and the plastic containment material. Foam and construction adhesives may be added to fill in any gaps. The top and bottom rings sandwich the containment plastic and combine with construction adhesive to create the bond between the sealing rings and plastic containment. The bottom ring may be sealed to the corrugated well cellar by the use of expanding foam sealant. In certain embodiments, the adhesive may be silicone, and the like.

Referring to FIGS. 1 through 5, the present invention includes a device and system for preventing contamination of oil from a well cellar 24 and into the ground 26. The present invention may include a bottom ring 12. The bottom ring 12 may have a vertical arm and a horizontal arm substantially perpendicular to the vertical arm. In certain embodiments, the vertical arm may be about 6 inches in length and the horizontal arm may be about 4 inches in length. The bottom ring 12 may be about 4×6× 5/16 inch steel angle iron rolled to form about a 99 inch outside diameter circle with the adjoining ends welded together.

In certain embodiments, the vertical arm is attached to a top rim of the well cellar 24. The horizontal arm may extend inward towards the center of the well cellar 24. In certain embodiments, the vertical arm is attached to the well cellar 24 by an expanding foam 22. The expanding foam 22 may fill any air pockets in between the bottom ring 12 and the wall cellar 22. The expanding foam 22 may be a two part expanding foam sealant.

A sheet of plastic 28 may then cover the bottom ring 12 and the opening formed by the top rim of the well cellar 24. In certain embodiments, a hole may be cut out of the plastic 28 covering the well cellar 24 opening. In certain embodiments, the sheet of plastic 28 may be adhered to the horizontal arm by an adhesive layer 14. The adhesive layer 14 may include semi liquid sealant (siloprene).

The present invention may further include a top ring 10. The top ring 10 may include about a ¼×4 inch flat bar steel which may be rolled to about a 99 inch outside diameter with the adjoining ends welded together. The top ring 10 may be at least partially aligned with the horizontal arm of the bottom ring 12. The top ring 10 is secured to the bottom ring, thereby sandwiching the sheet of plastic 28 in between. In certain embodiments, an adhesive layer 14 may be used to adhere the plastic 28 to the top ring 10. In certain embodiments, the hole may be cut out of the plastic 28 after the top ring 10 is attached to the bottom ring 12.

Therefore, the hole may be cut out of the sheet of plastic 28 within the parameter of the top ring 10.

In certain embodiments, the bottom ring 12 and the top ring 10 may include aligning holes. The horizontal leg and the top ring 10 may include about 20 half inch bolt holes equally spaced apart. The bottom ring 12 and the top ring 10 may be secured together by bolts 16 through the aligning holes. The bolts 16 may be grad 8 bolts 16. In such embodiments, a washer 18 may be placed over the top ring 10 hole and a washer 18 may be placed under the bottom ring 12 hole. The bolt 16 may pass through the aligning holes and the aligning washers 18 and may be secured by a nut 20. The nut 20 is tightened to create clamping pressure on the adhesive 14 that is covering the top and bottom of the plastic 28 between the rings 10, 12 which forms a seal. Therefore, the top ring 10 and the bottom ring 12 may be secured together, preventing oil from seeping in between the rings 10, 12 and into the ground soil 26.

A method of constructing a barrier to prevent contamination may include the following steps. First a user may remove about six inches or more of dirt from around the outside of the cellar 24 and removing large pieces of dirt. The bottom ring 12 may be attached to the top rim of the well cellar 26. A sheet of plastic 28 may be placed over the bottom ring 12 and cover the opening to the well cellar 26. The top ring 10 may be placed over the sheet of plastic and may at least partially align with the bottom ring 12. The bottom ring 12 and the top ring 10 may be secured together, thereby sandwiching the plastic sheeting 28 in between. A hole may be cut in the sheet of plastic 28 that covers the hole of the well cellar 26 either before, during, or after the steps listed above.

The method of construing a barrier to prevent contamination may further include the following steps. The bottom ring 12 may include a vertical arm and a horizontal arm substantially perpendicular to the vertical arm. The vertical arm may be attached to the well cellar 26. An expanding foam 22 may be injected in between the vertical arm and the well cellar 26. The plastic sheeting 28 may be sealed to the bottom ring 12 with an adhesive 14 and the top ring 10 may be sealed the plastic sheeting 28 with the adhesive 14. The top ring 10 and the bottom ring 12 may include aligning openings and thereby may be secured by bolting the top ring 10 and the bottom ring 12 together through the aligning openings.

In alternate embodiments, the present invention may be preinstalled on pieces of corrugated pipe before they are installed in the ground as pre-fabricated products. The present invention may also incorporate a guard rail system so that the cellars with eight feet in depth would be Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) compliant for fall protection. The present invention may also include a leak detection system that would have an alert for any potential problem. The size and dimensions of the steel could be changed and the product may still function. The fastener dimensions could also be changed.

It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates to exemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of constructing a barrier to prevent contamination comprising: attaching a bottom ring to a top rim, wherein the top rim forms an opening to a well cellar; placing a sheet of plastic over the bottom ring and covering the opening of the well cellar; placing a top ring over the sheet of plastic and at least partially aligning the top ring with the bottom ring; securing the top ring to the bottom ring, and thereby sandwiching the sheet of plastic in between; and cutting a hole in the sheet of plastic that covers the opening of the well cellar.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the bottom ring comprises a vertical arm and a horizontal arm substantially perpendicular to the vertical arm.
 3. The method of claim 2, further comprising the step of attaching the vertical arm to the well cellar.
 4. The method of claim 3, further comprising the step of injecting an expanding foam in between the vertical arm and the well cellar.
 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of sealing the plastic sheeting to the bottom ring with an adhesive and sealing the top ring to the plastic sheeting with the adhesive.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the top ring and the bottom ring comprise aligning openings.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein securing the top ring to the bottom ring comprises bolting the top ring and the bottom ring together through the aligning openings.
 8. A system for preventing contamination of oil from a well cellar comprising: a bottom ring comprising a vertical arm and a horizontal arm substantially perpendicular to the vertical arm, wherein the vertical arm is attached to a top rim of the well cellar; a sheet of plastic covering the bottom ring and covering an opening formed by the top rim of the well cellar; and a top ring at least partially aligning with the horizontal arm of the bottom ring, wherein the top ring is secured to the bottom ring.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein a hole is cut out of the sheet of plastic within the parameter of the top rim.
 10. The system of claim 8, wherein the vertical arm is attached to the well cellar by an expanding foam.
 11. The system of claim 8, wherein an adhesive layer is in between the bottom ring and the sheet of plastic and an adhesive layer is in between the sheet of plastic and the top ring.
 12. The system of claim 8, wherein the bottom ring and the top ring comprise aligning holes, wherein the bottom ring and the top ring are secured together by bolts through the aligning holes.
 13. A barrier to prevent contamination comprising: a bottom ring formed to secure to a top rim of well cellar and comprising a plurality of holes running through the bottom ring; a top ring aligning with the bottom ring, and comprising a plurality of holes running through the top ring, wherein the plurality of holes of the top ring align with the plurality of holes of the bottom ring; and a plurality of bolts formed to fit through the plurality of holes of the top ring aligned with the plurality of holes of the bottom ring, thereby securing the bottom ring and the top ring together.
 14. The barrier of claim 13, wherein the bottom ring comprises a vertical arm and a horizontal arm substantially perpendicular to the vertical arm, wherein the horizontal arm comprises the plurality of holes. 